English cricket team in Australia in 1958–59
Peter May captained the English cricket team in Australia in 1958–59, playing as England in the 1958-59 Ashes series against the Australians and as the MCC in their other matches on the tour. It was widely regarded as one of the strongest teams to depart English shores, comparable with the great teams of Johnny Douglas in 1911-12 and Percy Chapman in 1928-29. It had no obvious weaknesses, and yet it was beaten - and beaten badly. By the First Test the top batsmen had made runs, the Surrey trio of Loader, Laker and Lock had taken wickets, as had Lancashire's Brian Statham. South Australia, Victoria and an Australian XI had all been beaten - the last by the crushing margin of 345 runs - and all seemed rosy for Peter May's touring team. But in the Brisbane Test they lost by 8 wickets and the rest of the series failed to offer any hope of reversing their fortunes. The reasons for their failure were manifold; the captain was too defensive; injuries affected their best players; others were too young and inexperienced such as Arthur Milton, Raman Subba Row, Ted Dexter, Roy Swetman and John Mortimore, or at the end of their career; Godfrey Evans, Trevor Bailey, Jim Laker, Willie Watson and Frank Tyson. Their morale was further bruised when faced with bowlers of dubious legality and unsympathetic umpires. Peter May was criticised for bringing his fiancée Virginia Gilligan, the niece of Arthur Gilligan who was in Australia as a radio commentator, to Australia (an unprecedented move in 1950s cricket). The press blamed the poor performance on the team's heavy drinking, bad behaviour and lack of pride - a foretaste the treatment losing teams would receive in the 1980s. It was not a happy tour by any means and it would take 12 years to recover The Ashes. The England Touring squad Below are the Test statistics of the England squad. As was the convention of the time gentleman amateurs have their initials in front of their surname and professional players have their initials after their name, if their initials were used at all. First Test - Brisbane | team2 = | score-team1-inns1 = 134| runs-team1-inns1 = T.E. Bailey 27| wickets-team1-inns1 = I. Meckiff 3/33 Alan Davidson 3/36 R. Benaud (c) 3/46 A.T.W. Grout (wk) 3 Ct & 1 St| score-team2-inns1 = 186| runs-team2-inns1 = C.C. McDonald 42| wickets-team2-inns1 = Loader, P.J. 4/56 T.E. Bailey 3/35| score-team1-inns2 = 198| runs-team1-inns2 = T.E. Bailey 68| wickets-team1-inns2 = R. Benaud (c) 4/66| score-team2-inns2 = 147/2| runs-team2-inns2 = N.C.L. O'Neill 71*| wickets-team2-inns2 = | result = won by 8 wickets| venue = Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, Australia| umpires = C. Hoy (AUS) and M.J. McInnes (AUS)| motm = | report = scorecard| rain = | }} ''See Main Article - 1958-59 Ashes series'' Second Test - Melbourne | team2 = | score-team1-inns1 = 259| runs-team1-inns1 = P.B.H. May (c) 113| wickets-team1-inns1 = Alan Davidson 6/64 I. Meckiff 3/69 A.T.W. Grout (wk) 2 Ct & 1 St| score-team2-inns1 = 308| runs-team2-inns1 = R.N. Harvey 167| wickets-team2-inns1 = Statham, J.B. 7/57 Loader, P.J. 3/97| score-team1-inns2 = 87| runs-team1-inns2 = P.B.H. May (c) 17| wickets-team1-inns2 = I. Meckiff 6/38 Alan Davidson 3/41| score-team2-inns2 = 42/2| runs-team2-inns2 = J.W. Burke 18*| wickets-team2-inns2 = Laker, J.C. 1/7| result = won by 8 wickets| venue = Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne| umpires = M.J. McInnes (AUS) and R.J.J. Wright (AUS)| motm = | report = scorecard| rain = | }} ''See Main Article - 1958-59 Ashes series'' Third Test - Sydney | team2 = | score-team1-inns1 = 219| runs-team1-inns1 = P.B.H. May (c) 42 Swetman, R. (wk) 41| wickets-team1-inns1 = R. Benaud (c) 5/83| score-team2-inns1 = 357| runs-team2-inns1 = N.C.L. O'Neill 77 Alan Davidson 71 K.D. Mackay 57 L.E. Favell 54| wickets-team2-inns1 = Laker, J.C. 5/107 Lock, G.A.R. 4/130| score-team1-inns2 = 287/7 (dec)| runs-team1-inns2 = M.C. Cowdrey (vc) 100* P.B.H. May (c) 92| wickets-team1-inns2 = R. Benaud (c) 4/94| score-team2-inns2 = 54/2| runs-team2-inns2 = R.N. Harvey 18*| wickets-team2-inns2 = Laker, J.C. 2/10| result = Match Drawn| venue = Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney| umpires = C. Hoy (AUS) and M.J. McInnes(AUS)| motm = | report = scorecard| rain = | }} ''See Main Article - 1958-59 Ashes series'' Fourth Test - Adelaide | team2 = | score-team1-inns1 = 476| runs-team1-inns1 = C.C. McDonald 170 J.W. Burke 66 N.C.L. O'Neill 56| wickets-team1-inns1 = Trueman, F.S. 4/90 Statham, J.B. 3/83| score-team2-inns1 = 240| runs-team2-inns1 = M.C. Cowdrey (vc) 84| wickets-team2-inns1 = R. Benaud (c) 5/91 G.F. Rorke 3/23| score-team1-inns2 = 36/0| runs-team1-inns2 = J.W. Burke 16* L.E. Favell 15*| wickets-team1-inns2 = | score-team2-inns2 = 270 (follow-on)| runs-team2-inns2 = P.B.H. May (c) 59 Graveney, T.W. 53*| wickets-team2-inns2 = R. Benaud (c) 4/82 A.T.W. Grout (wk) 3 Ct| result = won by 10 wickets| venue = Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, Australia| umpires = M.J. McInnes (AUS) and R.J.J. Wright (AUS)| motm = | report = scorecard| rain = | }} ''See Main Article - 1958-59 Ashes series'' Fifth Test - Melbourne | team2 = | score-team1-inns1 = 205| runs-team1-inns1 = P.E. Richardson 68 Mortimore, J.B. 44*| wickets-team1-inns1 = R. Benaud (c) 4/43 Alan Davidson 3/38| score-team2-inns1 = 351| runs-team2-inns1 = C.C. McDonald 133 A.T.W. Grout (wk) 74 R. Benaud (c) 64| wickets-team2-inns1 = Trueman, F.S. 4/92 Laker, J.C. 4/93 M.C. Cowdrey (vc) 3 Ct| score-team1-inns2 = 214| runs-team1-inns2 = Graveney, T.W. 54| wickets-team1-inns2 = R.R. Lindwall 3/37 G.F. Rorke 3/41| score-team2-inns2 = 69/1| runs-team2-inns2 = C.C. McDonald 51*| wickets-team2-inns2 = | result = won by 9 wickets| venue = Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne| umpires = L.H. Townsend (AUS) and R.J.J. Wright (AUS)| motm = | report = scorecard| rain = | }} ''See Main Article - 1958-59 Ashes series'' Ceylon The English team had a stopover in Colombo en route to Australia and played a one-day single-innings match there against the Ceylon national team, which at that time did not have Test status. Annual reviews *Playfair Cricket Annual 1959 *Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 1960 Category:1958 in Australian cricket Category:1958 in English cricket Category:1959 in Australian cricket Category:1958 in Ceylon Category:1959 in English cricket Category:Australian cricket seasons from 1945–46 to 1969–70 1958-59 1958 Category:International cricket competitions from 1945–46 to 1960 1958-59